Green Lane
Green Lanes are usually By-Ways that are open to traffic some or all of the time. The one near us is open to 4-wheel traffic between May and September but 2 wheels seem to be able to use it all year round. The main users are walkers and those local dog owners who want to go a little bit further afield.
Meadow Brown (bottom) & Gatekeeper (top)
It is an excellent wildlife corridor running between arable fields and pasture. The trees that line it vary in type and age and for one portion a small copse abuts it. It is a special place all year round for birds but in the spring and summer the place comes really alive with insects, particularly butterflies and dragonflies.
Ringlet
Today was the day just after the spike of hottest July weather ever. The temperature was over 10 degrees less than yesterday and it made for a very pleasant amble along the lane. The seasonal shifts in butterfly populations is very apparent at the moment. The Gatekeepers are rising in number, their bright yellow/brown wings lying open to soak up the heat ready to fly off to continue the species. By contrast, the Meadow Browns have had their time and are dwindling in number. Many still flying are showing the signs of age: dull colouring and tatty wings. There are still a few ringlets around, one or two bright and new and some also worn around the edges.
Ringlet
The brightest one on the lane today though is the Peacock, resplendent, cocky and not afraid of going where it wants - even landing on my shirt for a good minute. The colours are so striking that they couldn’t hide if they wanted to - unless they stowed their wings up, the black underwings a good disguise in the heavy shadows of the dense hedgerows. But as soon as they fly, their brilliance is breathtaking.
Peacock
The colourful varieties are easy to learn, at least the ones we see regularly. The ones I have trouble with are the white ones - Small White, Large White and Green Veined White. I have a large folder of such butterflies on my hard disk, all called “Whites” waiting for me to get to grips with the differences, though I tell myself that can come after sorting out the difference between a rook, a crow, a jackdaw and a raven in flight. Still, I am reasonably confident that the white here is of the Green-veined variety.
Green-veined White
